Zooey (Sherman Lau, 2006)

Dir. Sherman Lau
Starring Sarah Louise Lilley, Xavier Jimenez

One of the great things about independent films is that they almost always are made by people who really care about the material. This is especially true with extremely low budget films, the kind that go to the Slamdance film festival instead of Sundance. Since there is little studio interference, the director usually has complete creative control and focus groups aren’t used to sap the film dry of anything controversial or interesting. All of this is true about Sherman Lau’s Zooey, a film made with intense affection for the main characters. The only problem is that it is mind bogglingly awful from start to finish.

Angel (Xavier Jimenez) is a runner for a drug dealer and Zooey (Sarah Louise Lilley) is a prostitute. They meet one day when Angel is running from some hoodlums after a deal went awry. Director Sherman Lau doesn’t seem too interested in showing how their romance developed. In an all too brief sequence of events, they eventually fall in love and get married. Both have dreams of better lives, but a variety of problems constantly keep them stuck in their dangerous dead-end careers.

There are a few things about the film that suggest Lau might have some future potential as a filmmaker. He utilizes an interesting filmmaking technique by having several fast forward sequences throughout the film that quickly get us through the mundane moments of everyday life, suggesting Lau is not interested in wasting time with boring exposition. These sequences are also effective at evoking the sense that the characters are constantly trying to run away from their current path in life.

Lau based the film on the story of two people he knew in real life, and it’s obvious he cared about them deeply. He fills every frame of the film with sensitivity, refusing to judge his characters for their professions. Unfortunately, Lau is not a skilled enough filmmaker to overcome the obvious lack of budget that he has here. He clearly has trouble figuring out how to properly stage a scene. An early scene where Angel ties two thugs’ shoes together so he can get away is laughably unrealistic. A later scene involving a shootout with cops avoids any sense of logic to make it through to the conclusion.

Lau’s writing could also use some work. There's a confusing subplot where Angel and Zooey take care of the son of one of Zooey's prostitute friends while she is away. In an unconvincing series of scenes they begin to care about the child. When his mother never returns, he is taken in by social services, but Zooey and Angel want to adopt him. Lau never bothers to explain how any of this makes sense, especially a scene where the agency tells them that their applications looked very good. It’s pretty hard to understand how they managed to accomplish that.

The performances are particularly weak. Sarah Louise Lilley is occasionally able to find some inner depth for Zooey, but the constant shouting scenes do the actress no favors, and she seems completely lost during her character’s drug induced hazes. Even worse is Xavier Jimenez who isn’t able to utter one convincing line in the entire film. His attempts to emote are painfully embarrassing. His wooden performance really detracts from any emotional resonance the film tries to create. Performances from minor character are equally bad, especially the stereotypical pimps and hookers that pop up throughout the film.

Sometimes amateurish performances can actually add to the realism of a film, particularly in gritty independent films. This has worked in the past with films like Down to the Bone or Sherrybaby, but Zooey is a blatantly sympathetic film that requires a deep emotional connection to the main characters. Lau and his actors are unable to help us make that connection, making the film almost completely empty of any real value. I don’t have a hard time believing that the real life characters this film was based on were decent individuals stuck in a miserable life, but Lau‘s film doesn‘t do them justice. As if their fate wasn’t already bad enough, they deserved a much better movie made about them.

Grade: D

Black Girl (Ousmane Sembene, 1966)

Dir. Ousmane Sembene
Starring Mbissine Therese Diop

Ousmane Sembene had a very interesting life before he began to direct movies. He was a Senegalese man drafted to fight for the free French forces in World War 2. Back home he got involved in the trade union movement. Participating in railroad strikes and protesting the French participation in Vietnam. He then became a novelist, using his experiences as inspiration for stories that could shed light on important issues for his people. Quickly realizing that his books would only reach a limited audience, he began work as a filmmaker as a way to reach the outside world. He would eventually be considered the premiere African filmmaker in the world, and his 2004 release Moolaade would receive international acclaim and even an American theatrical release. Almost 40 years earlier was the release of his first film Black Girl, a sincere but uneven depiction of the tragic consequences of racism and colonialism.

Black Girl is centered around Diouana (Mbissine Therese Diop), a young woman from a small town in Senegal who goes to work as a nanny for a rich French couple in Dakar. The couple moves to France and takes Diouana along with them. She initially has great dreams of the beauty of the French beaches and shops, but never gets a chance to visit them. The couple now expects Diouana to work as their servant instead of nanny. She begins to feel isolated and lonely as the harsh treatment increases throughout the story. The couple is only referred to as Mister and Mistress throughout the film and we never learn their names, suggesting a disconnect from the normal trappings of human relations and a parallel to slavery.

It's not hard to see that Membene was originally a novelist who graduated to film. In Black Girl, he utilizes constant narration to make his point, with very little dialogue throughout. Most of the plot developments are told to us by Diouana, even as we see them happening. Membene is not yet ready to trust the audience to grasp the inner thoughts of his characters. Instead of allowing the actress to express such thoughts through her acting, or utilizing more filmmaking techniques to advance plot points and thematic elements, he has Diouana tell us everything as if she is reading a book.

Unfortunately, Membene's narrative does not appropriately build to his conclusion. Mistress is certainly rude and most likely racist, but the things done to Diouana throughout the film are fairly tame compared to what we've seen and read in countless stories about the civil rights struggle in America. Mistress constantly scolds her, forces her to wear an apron, and lies to her about her expected duties. This is all certainly bad, but we are shown nothing that warrants the impending tragic conclusion. There isn't even a point where she is prevented from leaving the job. The film is likely more potent for those in the region, who will certainly have a stronger inherent anger about the colonialism and abuse suffered at the hands of the French. Such inherent anger will likely make the treatment of Diouana seem much worse.

A subplot involving a romance between Diouana and a man from Dakar is developed in a confusing, haphazard manner. Diouana keeps a photograph of the man throughout her stay in France, but the character isn't remotely developed. We only see bits and pieces of him, and hear what Diouana says about him in the narration. It's uncertain why Membene felt the need to include this romance in the film, since it doesn't add anything to the overall message of the film and the positive spin put on it actually detracts from the overall theme of Diouana's increasing despair.

It's impossible to doubt the sincerity of Membene. He is clearly angry about the treatment of his country by the French, and by the way that Africans are defined by the color of their skin. Unfortunately, there are only a handful of moments where he conveys that Diouana is treated as a racial object. The rest of the film it seems like she just has an excessively mean boss. Since the film only has a 56 minute running time, it feels like much more could have been included to support Membene’s arguments.

There is one beautiful running sequence throughout the film that shows Membene's inherent storytelling skill. There is an African mask that Diouana takes from her hometown and gives to her employers. It changes hands throughout the film, a constant reminder of her heritage. At the end, the mask is used as a reminder of what happened. Racism is one of the ugliest aspects of human nature, and as the mask chases down Diouana’s employer, it chases us down too, and reminds us of the horrors perpetuated in the name of racial subjugation. It’s the most effective aspect of Black Girl, and makes you wish the rest of the film had lived up to the power of that theme.

Grade: C+

300 (Zack Snyder, 2007) **1/2

Dir. Zack Snyder
Starring Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, Dominic West, Michael Fassbender, Vincent Regan

The Battle of Thermopylae is one of the most interesting historical events I’ve ever read about. The fact that a small group of men were able to hold off a vastly superior army was fascinating and inspiring. There had only been one prior film version of this battle, the absolutely unwatchable 300 Spartans, and there didn’t seem to be much interest in this battle since then. Most of the books or websites discussing it talked about Thermopylae in a philosophical or dry historical context. It was hard to find something that could really get you to feel what it was like. Likely spurred on by the success of Lord of the Rings, two studios started working on film versions of Thermopylae. The first one that made it to the screen (the other one is still in doubt) was the adaptation of Frank Miller’s graphic novel 300. Miller’s story was not pure history, as it added fantasy elements to the classic battle, but its highly stylized nature actually did a great job of capturing the heat of the battle. Director Zack Snyder’s adaptation of that novel is a glorious and rousing technical production that suffers from the inclusion of an embarrassingly bad subplot.

In 380 BC, the Persian army was rumored to be a million strong (although current estimates place it much lower than that), and they were marching right for Sparta. Sparta’s King Leonidas has a perfect plan for stopping them, by funneling the vast Persian army into the narrow mountain pass at Thermopylae. Unfortunately, he is prevented from leading his army to battle because of an important Greek festival called the Carneia. Despite his pleas, the oracle has spoken and no war must be fought during the festival. Leonidas then decides to lead a small force of 300 men (all whom already had sons who could take care of the family) to hold the Persians long enough for the rest of Spartan army to join the battle. Despite constant attacks from the Persians, Leonidas and his men stood their ground and frustrated King Xerxes.

Director Zack Snyder was a great choice for the project. He had previously shown his ability to add life to an adaptation with his Dawn of the Dead remake. In 300, Snyder and his team did a brilliant job of capturing the visceral moments of this famous battle, the only fault being some bizarre heavy metal music cues. Many have complained about the excessive use of slow motion, but it fits right in with the film’s graphic novel style. Snyder gives us a perfect introduction to the Spartan phalanx formation, and seeing it in action is beautiful. Leonidas and his men instantly push the Persians back, killing them quickly and efficiently, and those that don’t die instantly find themselves pushed off a steep cliff. The movie gives you a perfect view of the nature of this battle and how the Spartans were able to use the narrow terrain to their advantage. In these moments, 300 approaches cinematic greatness.

However, there is a distracting subplot going on back in Sparta. Leonidas’ wife Queen Gorgo is desperately trying to convince the Spartans to ignore the festival and join the 300. Every once in a while Snyder takes away from the incredible battle scene and comes back to the political affairs of Sparta. It’s a pretty jolting experience and Snyder himself doesn’t seem so interested in it. The scenes lack so much energy or careful thought that we get the feeling it was included more to be faithful to the graphic novel than to try and make an interesting movie. While being faithful to the source material is nice, there’s no reason to do it when the source has obvious flaws. If you leave in these flaws, then you’re accepting them as part of your adaptation. And considering that the conclusion of the subplot has absolutely no bearing on the main plot makes it a completely worthless enterprise.

The treatment of Queen Gorgo, and women in general, is one of the weakest parts of the movie. At the beginning, they portray her as a strong individualistic woman who isn’t afraid of standing up to any man. Later in the film, she struggles with threats made by a councilman named Theron. He’s threatened to block any attempt to send the Spartan army to help out Leonidas, but offers her a way out. The fact that Queen Gorgo accepts his proposal does not fit with the noble character we’ve seen up to that point in the movie. It seems this scene was written solely for the silly crowd pleasing moment near the end of the film when she speaks to the council. The problem is that this final scene still could have taken place and been just as crowd pleasing if Snyder had allowed the character to retain her dignity earlier in the film. The other women in the film are portrayed writhing around on the ground or seducing the Greek traitor Ephialtes.

There has been some debate about the political message this film apparently brings. Even Iran has gotten in the middle of this, complaining about the film’s treatment of Persians. There are several moments during the political subplot that people seem to think suggest a parallel to the current situation in Iraq. The claim is that by siding with Leonidas’ decision to stop the Persians, Snyder is trying to positive spin on Bush’s decision to invade Iraq. The problem with this claim is that the film is a faithful adaptation of a graphic novel that was written in 1998. Any similarities to the controversial situation in Iraq are purely coincidental similarities to historical incidents. It would be just as likely that the film is attacking the role of religious fundamentalism in politics. However, I think any attempt to pin a political message on this picture is pointless. Zack Snyder was far more interested in displaying awesome battle sequences than attaching any message to his picture.

Despite the considerable flaws, 300 remains an exciting depiction of one of the most important battles in world history. The outstanding technical work makes for extremely exciting action sequences that perfectly capture the brutal nature of war. As Leonidas, Gerard Butler has such an incredibly commanding presence, that you want to suit up and go help him out. If only Snyder had rejected a needless subplot, he could have had something great. As it is, we are left with a decent historical action movie containing some incredible moments.

Films Seen - 2007

Here is a listing of releases from 2007 that I saw, sorted by rating...

****

Great World of Sound (Craig Zobel)
Ratatouille (Brad Bird)

***1/2

Away From Her (Sarah Polley)
Grindhouse (Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino)
The Host (Bong Joon-Ho)
Rocket Science (Jeffrey Blitz)
Sicko (Michael Moore)
Third Monday in October (Vanessa Roth)
Waitress (Adrienne Shelley)

***

28 Weeks Later (Juan Carlos Fresnadillo)
Blood Car (Alex Orr)
Day Night Day Night (Julia Loktev)
Election Day (Katy Chevigny)
In the Land of Women (Jon Kasdan)
King of Kong (Seth Gordon)
Last Days of Left Eye (Lauren Lazin)
Montclair (Mike Ramsdell)
The TV Set (Jake Kasdan)

**1/2

300 (Zack Snyder)
Pretty in the Face (Nate Meyer)
Drifting Elegant (Amy Glazer)
Ocean's 13 (Steven Soderbergh)

**

American Fugitive: The Truth About Hassan (Jean-Daniel Lafond)
Blades of Glory (Josh Gordon and Will Speck)
Kamp Katrina (Ashley Sabin and David Redmon)
The Wind That Shakes the Barley (Ken Loach)
Spider-man 3 (Sam Raimi)
Transformers (Michael Bay)

*1/2

Close to Home (Vardit Bilu and Dalia Hagar)
Disturbia (DJ Caruso)
The Elephant King (Seth Grossman)

*

All the Days Before Tomorrow (Francois Dompierre)
The Insurgents (Scott Dacko)
License to Wed (Ken Kwapis)
Park (Kurt Voelker)
Somebodies (Hadjii)

1/2*

Zero Stars

Movie Reviews - 2007

Here's a listing of links to reviews I wrote for movies that were released in 2007.

28 Weeks Later (Juan Carlos Fresnadillo) - ***1/2

300 (Zack Snyder) **1/2

Away From Her (Sarah Polley) ***1/2

Blades of Glory (Josh Gordon and Will Speck) **

Disturbia (DJ Caruso) **

Grindouse (Quentin Tarantino) ***1/2

The Host (Bong Joon-Ho) ***1/2

In the Land of Women (Jon Kasdan) ***

The TV Set (Jake Kasdan) ***

The Wind That Shakes the Barley (Ken Loach) **

Top 10 Songs 1955-

1955

1.Maybellene, Chuck Berry

2. Tutti Frutti, Little Richard

3. All Around the World, Little Willie John

4. The Great Pretender, The Platters

5. This Little Girl of Mine, Ray Charles

6. Thirty Days, Chuck Berry

7. Folsom Prison Blues, Johnny Cash

8. Only You, The Platters

9. Ain't That a Shame?, Fats Domino

10. Don't You Know, Fats Domino

1956

1. Roll Over Beethoven, Chuck Berry

2. Hound Dog, Elvis Presley

3. Long Tall Sally, Little Richard

4. Come Go With Me, Del Vikings

5. Fever, Little Willie John

6. Rip it Up, Little Richard

7. Brown-Eyed Handsome Man, Chuck Berry

8. Blue Suede Shoes, Elvis Presley

9. I'm In Love Again, Fats Domino

10. Hallelujah I Love Her So, Ray Charles

1957

1. That'll Be the Day, Buddy Holly 

2. Jailhouse Rock, Elvis Presley

3. Great Balls of Fire, Jerry Lee Lewis

4. Rock and Roll Music, Chuck Berry

5. Oh Boy, Buddy Holly

6. Wake Up Little Susie, Everly Brothers

7. You Send Me, Sam Cooke

8. Everyday, Buddy Holly

9. Keep a Knockin, Little Richard

10. Peggy Sue, Buddy Holly

1958

1. Johnny B Goode, Chuck Berry

2. Summertime Blues, Eddie Cochran

3. Ready Teddy, Buddy Holly

4. Sweet Little Sixteen, Chuck Berry

5. All I Have to Do is Dream, The Everly Brothers

6. Reelin and Rockin, Chuck Berry

7. It's So Easy, Buddy Holly

8. Good Golly Miss Molly, Little Richard

9. La Bamba, Ritchie Valens

10. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, The Platters

1959

1. What'd I Say, Ray Charles

2. Shout, The Isley Brothers

3. Back in the USA, Chuck Berry

4. Peggy Sue Got Married, Buddy Holly

5. Everybody Loves to Cha Cha Cha, Sam Cooke

6. I Only Have Eyes For You, The Flamingos

7. Sea of Love, Phil Phillips and the Twilights

8. That's Why I Love You So, Jackie Wilson 

9. Only Sixteen, Sam Cooke

10. Little Queenie, Chuck Berry

1960

1. Wonderful World, Sam Cooke

2. At Last, Etta James

3. Georgia on My Mind, Ray Charles

4. The Twist, Chubby Checker

5. Chain Gang, Sam Cooke

6. Save the Last Dance For Me, The Drifters

7. Walk - Don't Run, The Ventures

8. Only the Lonely, Roy Orbison

9. Will You Love Me Tomorrow?, The Shirelles

10. Shakin All Over, Johnny Kidd and the Pirates

1961

1. Stand By Me, Ben E. King

2. Cupid, Sam Cooke

3. Hit the Road Jack, Ray Charles

4. Crazy, Patsy Cline

5. Come On, Chuck Berry

6. The Wanderer, Dion & the Belmonts

7. Mama Said, The Shirelles

8. Duke of Earl, Gene Chandler

9. Free Me, Johnny Preston

10. Please Mr. Postman, The Marvelettes

1962

1. You Don't Know Me, Ray Charles

2. Twisting the Night Away, Sam Cooke

3. You've Really Got a Hold on Me, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles

4. Surfin Safari, The Beach Boys

5. Twist and Shout, The Isley Brothers

6. Up On the Roof, The Drifters

7. Bring it On Home to Me, Sam Cooke

8. Unchain My Heart, Ray Charles

9. Nothing Can Change This Love, Sam Cooke

10. Stubborn Kind of Fellow, Marvin Gaye

1963

1. Twist and Shout, The Beatles

2. Blowin in the Wind, Bob Dylan

3. I Want to Hold Your Hand, The Beatles

4. Another Saturday Night, Sam Cooke

5. Please Please Me, The Beatles

6. I Saw Her Standing There, The Beatles

7. I Only Want to Be With You, Dusty Springfield

8. Be My Baby, The Ronettes

9. Just One Look, Doris Troy

10. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home), Darlene Love

1964

1. A Change is Gonna Come, Sam Cooke

2. My Girl, The Temptations

3. I'm a Loser, The Beatles

4. A Hard Day's Night, The Beatles

5. You Really Got Me, The Kinks

6. You Never Can Tell, Chuck Berry

7. Dancing in the Street, Martha and the Vandellas

8. I Get Around, The Beach Boys

9. House of the Rising Sun, The Animals

10. The Way You Do The Things You Do, The Temptations

1965

1. Like a Rolling Stone, Bob Dylan

2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction, Rolling Stones

3. In My Life, The Beatles

4. Mr. Tambourine Man, Bob Dylan

5. The Tracks of My Tears, Smokey Robinson

6. In the Midnight Hour, Wilson Pickett

7. We Gotta Get Out of This Place, The Animals

8. Nowhere to Run, Martha & the Vandellas

9. I Got You (I Feel Good), James Brown

10. The Sound of Silence, Simon & Garfunkel

1966

1. Paint It Black, Rolling Stones

2. For What It's Worth, Buffalo Springfield

3. Hey Joe, Jimi Hendrix

4. When a Man Loves a Woman, Percy Sledge

5. Good Vibrations, Beach Boys

6. Eleanor Rigby, The Beatles

7. You Don't Have to Say You Love Me, Dusty Springfield

8. River Deep Mountain High, Ike and Tina

9. Reach Out, I'll Be There, Four Tops

10. Hold On! I'm a Comin!, Sam & Dave

1967

1. A Day in the Life, The Beatles

2. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles

3. Respect, Aretha Franklin

4. Somebody to Love, Jefferson Airplane

5. Purple Haze, Jimi Hendrix

6. Light My Fire, The Doors

7. Reflections, The Supremes

8. Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds, The Beatles

9. Fire, Jimi Hendrix

10. The Time Has Come Today, The Chambers Brothers

1968

1. The Dock of the Bay, Otis Redding

2. Hey Jude, The Beatles

3. All Along the Watchtower, Jimi Hendrix

4. I Heard it Through the Grapevine, Marvin Gaye

5. Think, Aretha Franklin

6. Time of the Season, The Zombies

7. Born to Be Wild, Steppenwolf

8. The Weight, The Band

9. Son of a Preacher Man, Dusty Springfield

10. Hush, Deep Purple

1969

1. Fortunate Son, Creedence Clearwater Revival

2. Something, The Beatles

3. Pinball Wizard, The Who

4. Here Comes the Sun, The Beatles

5. Bad Moon Rising, Creedence Clearwater Revival

6. My Cherie Amour, Steve Wonder

7. Get Ready, Rare Earth

8. Carolina in My Mind, James Taylor

9. It's Your Thing, The Isley Brothers

10. I Want You Back, Jackson 5

1970

1. Fire and Rain, James Taylor

2. Layla, Derek and the Dominoes

3. Let it Be, The Beatles

4. Up Around the Bend, Creedence Clearwater Revival

5. Signed, Sealed, Delivered, Stevie Wonder

6. Immigrant Song, Led Zeppelin

7. All Right Now, Free

8. Instant Karma, John Lennon

9. Proud Mary, Ike & Tina Turner

10. Have You Ever Seen the Rain, Creedence Clearwater Revival